Lithium Leisure Battery

It can damage the battery if it’s lithium. Just look at the measures Tesla take on their battery packs. They are liquid cooled / warmed to keep them tip top.

Lithium battery packs are not really for the DIY enthusiast, you really need to understand how they work, then engineer in some fail safes. Not rocket science but a bit more involved than pub engineering.
 
Lithiums have a negative temperature coefficient so as the temperature drops, their internal resistance rises. They're usable in cold conditions but you should use lower charge and discharge rates to avoid internal IxR heating, which can damage the cells. Another point to watch with the NTC is that charging to the maximum bulk voltage (3.6v per cell for LiFePo4) at sub zero temperatures can lead to an over-voltage condition when the cells are subsequently heated either through internal IxR or through ambient conditions. Over-voltage is one of the few ways to damage a LiFePo4
afro.gif

Cheers
Phil
 
superchargedpolo said:
.....Lithium battery packs are not really for the DIY enthusiast.......Not rocket science but a bit more involved than pub engineering.
Click to expand...
..which is why the self contained offering from LiFOS looks appealing to me :)

@Phil_G thanks. When we are using the van it will never get close to zero C in there so my only concern is when the van is sat on the drive for days/weeks at a time and the connected solar panel will, depending on state of charge, still try to charge the battery - if I'm understanding your comment correctly then there is a chance that this could overcharge the cells during extended cold spells - correct? Is there such a thing as a solar charge controller that takes account of ambient temperature around the battery as well as the voltage to decide it to try and charge??
 
You could add a thermostatically controlled heater pad/jacket powered by the battery. That way it could always be charged..
 
Not a lot. These batteries need waking up when they are cold by either charging at a low rate or switching on a small load. High rate charging and discharging is not possible otherwise.

This was in reply to Davenjos question about the solar panel charging when below 0 degrees but I seem to be out of sync here
 
With lithium and solar both getting cheaper and more popular in leisure vehicles this has to be real world problem for an increasing number of campers - if not already available, I’m hoping that someone comes up with an out of the box solution (@Loz - building the heat mat idea into the battery casing maybe??).

I guess one option may be to have something such as a fridge permanently running (mine usually is) to keep drawing power (in my case this probably wouldn’t work though as the compressor stops running once the ambient temperature around it drops below about 5c).

Interesting discussion guys and raises some serious questions about the current maturity level of the technology and/or viability of this for me - probably enough for me to think and explore a bit more before taking the plunge and making another impulse purchase:)
 
Just re-read this thread.. can not decide which is best..same points as @Davenjo just mine would need to be underslung.. so with the ambiant temp concerns vrs solar and winter camping etc.

Have looked at sterling wildside' today byt unsure if this is correct or suitable.
Heading to NEC show Feb to get more info and a clearer picture that I can understand better..
 
Fish said:
New Lithium Leisure Battery Available!

@Davenjo @Dellmassive @Loz
Thoughts pls
Click to expand...

That's interesting, but very small... only 68ah which is equivalent to a AGM 120ah only because you can use 90% of the lifepo4 vs only 50% of an AGM..

Looks like £700 for 69ah so it's £10.29 per ah.

A max of two batteries in parallel and none in serie, looks like they are using an internal bms and heating system go8ng by the spec curves... 2700 charge cycles....



I'd wait for some Reviews and real world tests first as it's a big investment...

I've been doing lots of research recently for lithium, my preferred manufacturer is Victron, I'm looking at the smart 160ah, it's £1600 but had 10year grnty, 5000 charge cycles . . .Egg at Etc.

But I can find cheaper chineese ones for £600 for 100ah, just look on eBay......but...... 1year warranty...poor charge cycles....so over 10years you would prob need to buy twice.

For me it's a big investment that should last for 10years, so the advice is buy right, buy once. Victron is tried and tested. Loads of info about. Lithium Lifepo4 is what we want.

Also most dc-dc chargers and solar controller will work fine with them
 
Fish said:
New Lithium Leisure Battery Available!

@Davenjo @Dellmassive @Loz
Thoughts pls
Click to expand...


I’ve gone for one of these !
Yeh lots of cash. But while I have it I’m spending on the van ! Only planning to do this once. So wanted the best. Weight was I consideration of mine.
Read well. Was recommended to me from Uberbus. He’s got one in his. I’ve taken a punt. Almost ready to run now. Been a long wait !

I hope Hope hope it’s all it’s cracked up to be !
 
Fish said:
Only 8kg in weight.. :eek:
Click to expand...

Yep, but at only 68ah you would need two to run anything for any time and defo need solar to keep it topped up.

68ah would be dead flat in 10hours running just one of my small beer fridges.
 
Dellmassive said:
Yep, but at only 68ah you would need two to run anything for any time and defo need solar to keep it topped up.

68ah would be dead flat in 10hours running just one of my small beer fridges.
Click to expand...
250w panel should help with this... currently producing 84w
 
Fish said:
New Lithium Leisure Battery Available!

@Davenjo @Dellmassive @Loz
Thoughts pls
Click to expand...
That's the one I posted a link for earlier in this thread - definitely interested further down the line.

@Dellmassive - I think you might need a better fridge :) - even before getting solar, my 75ah would keep my Waeco CRX compressor fridge running and serving ice cold beer for 48+hours. I would definitely see the 68ah, provided by this lightweight, as a viable alternative for my 75ah AGM. Totally agree with your earlier comments re maturity of technology and waiting for some real world reviews (I did suggest that Hillside might want to install one in my van free of charge as part of such a test but they didn't bite :) )
 
Davenjo said:
That's the one I posted a link for earlier in this thread - definitely interested further down the line.

@Dellmassive - I think you might need a better fridge :) - even before getting solar, my 75ah would keep my Waeco CRX compressor fridge running and serving ice cold beer for 48+hours. I would definitely see the 68ah, provided by this lightweight, as a viable alternative for my 75ah AGM. Totally agree with your earlier comments re maturity of technology and waiting for some real world reviews (I did suggest that Hillside might want to install one in my van free of charge as part of such a test but they didn't bite :) )
Click to expand...
Lol...nice move.

And yes agreed, our beer fridges are not compressor....

We have 2x 12v fridges and one 3way fridge.. none are uber efficient.

Loving lithium..... only thing holding me back atm.is the £1600 battery, plus the bms box.... but unsure about the below odegC we have now and again and whether we need a heating Matt or not...

But our next power upgrade is defo lithium lifepo4.

Edit: typos. (Spell checker)
 
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